German Patent No. 40 17 415 describes a conventional starter including a starter transformer whose primary winding receives a voltage. The secondary winding transforms this voltage up to the voltage needed to start the lamp. On the primary side, a capacitor is connected in parallel to the series connection of the primary winding and a controllable switch formed by a controlled thyristor. For starting, this capacitor is charged to a voltage which is then effective and applied at this time. On reaching a certain voltage, the controllable switch is then switched through, and the capacitor is discharged.
With this conventional starter, there is no input circuit or other arrangement to ensure that the voltage surges which always occur when starting a high-pressure gas discharge lamp are prevented or at least rendered mostly harmless. At the moment of the sudden break-through of gas within the high-pressure gas discharge lamp, extreme voltage peaks occur, also acting on the primary side and at the power supply terminals via the starter transformer.